Department of Education

This is statutory appointment with a remuneration of £1,500 per day where the reviewer is called upon.

Location – Home based, London and Bristol

Exciting opportunity to join the Office for Students

Creating the Office for Students (OfS) is a central tenet of our reforms contained in the Higher Education and Research Act 2017.
The OfS will create and oversee a regulatory environment that puts the interests of students at the heart of the system, with a strong focus on promoting choice and competition in the provision of higher education.
Further detail on the role of the OfS is set out in the Government’s White Paper, the Act and in the OfS’ Strategy and Business Plan.

One of the OfS’s roles, led by the Director for Fair Access and Participation, is to promote and safeguard access to and participation in Higher Education by under-represented groups, in particular through its functions relating to the approval and enforcement of access and participation plans made by registered higher education providers that are subject to a mandatory fee cap.
The OfS also has powers to impose penalties on any registered Higher Education provider which it considers has breached its access and participation plan registration condition.

The OfS is required to have a Statutory Reviewer in place to review disputed OfS decisions relating to access and participation plans.
Higher education providers have the opportunity to seek a review of such decisions and the legislation requires the Secretary of State to appoint a person or panel to carry out these reviews.
fter a referral to the Reviewer, the OfS is required to reconsider its decision having regard to the Reviewer’s recommendation.
It is essential that the Independent Statutory Reviewer has the requisite background in analysing complex disputes and assessing evidence to make independent decisions.
The Statutory Reviewer will occupy an influential role, providing the necessary checks and balances to ensure all students have fairer access to the Higher Education sector, irrespective of their backgrounds.